If you've ever been confronted with an ingredient you want to use but have no idea what flavors pair well with it, Foodpairing is a webapp that can help. Just type in an ingredient you want to use, and it'll offer up a map of ingredients and dishes that compliment its flavor.

Most of us don't stare at our pantries like they're the from an episode of Chopped, but every home cook knows what it's like to look at an ingredient they bought with good intentions and have no idea what to prepare with it, or how to prepare it at all. Foodpairing can offer up complimentary flavors and dishes that will suit whatever you're cooking with. For example, in the image above (click "expand" to enlarge) I searched for fresh ginger, and was told everything from mustard to a fried pork loin would go well with ginger's very distinct flavor. If I wanted to get fancy, I could also try lemongrass, fresh pomelo, or even fresh oyster.

Foodpairing is a tool that's designed for chefs and cooks who are coming up with menus, and because of that only the demo service is free. The rest is locked away behind a monthly subscription fee ($13/mo if you pay for a year, $18/mo otherwise) that we just can't justify for the average person. However, the demo map is probably more than enough for most people, even if it has some ingredients locked away. Hit the link below to go right to the demo and try it out.